Lightning strike leads to hospitalization of youth church group during hike in Utah
How do thunderstorms form? How thunder and lightning are formed
Here are the three things a thunderstorm needs to form.
Seven children on a hike with their church were hospitalized Thursday after lightning struck the wet ground they were standing on, officials said.
A youth group of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Salina, Utah, was hiking when it began to rain and water began to collect on the ground, according to a Facebook post from the Sevier County Sheriff’s Office.
The lightning struck the ground next to the group and about 50 of them felt the shock, police said.
Two of the seven juvenile members who were taken to the hospital because of the risk of electric shock had “some serious symptoms,” according to the sheriff, but the injuries are not expected to be life-threatening.
Lightning strikes: The chances of being struck by lightning are low, but safety knowledge is still important
How common is it to be struck by lightning?
The probability of being struck by lightning is about 1 in 1.22 million. However, fatal lightning strikes occur most frequently in the summer months.
At least three people have died from lightning strikes this year, including a 59-year-old man in New Jersey, a 73-year-old man in Florida and a 51-year-old rancher in Colorado who died along with 34 of his cattle.
But while the number of lightning strikes is increasing, the number of deaths from lightning strikes is declining, reaching a record low last year.
Experts warn people to stay indoors during a thunderstorm.
Contributor: Jeanine Santucci, USA TODAY
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